The
National Park Service last week proposed revisions to the regulations
that address smoking in national parks. The proposed revisions would
change the regulation that defines smoking to include the use of
electronic cigarettes and other electronic nicotine delivery systems
(ENDS)

The proposed
revisions would also allow a superintendent to close an area,
building, structure, or facility to smoking, which would include the
use of ENDS, when necessary to maintain public health and safety.

“Protecting
the health and safety of our visitors and employees is one of the
most critical duties of the National Park Service,” said Michael
Reynolds, Acting Director of the National Park Service. “It is
clear from a recent rule by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
and a report by the Surgeon General that electronic cigarettes are a
threat to public health, especially to the health of young people.”

In May 2016, the
FDA finalized
a rule bringing ENDS in line with regulations that
have governed tobacco products since 2009. The FDA expressed concerns
about ENDS use by youth and stated that in addition to nicotine
exposure, there are other chemicals present in ENDS that can cause
disease. Also in 2016, the Surgeon General issued
a report emphasizing that ENDS use among youth and
young adults is a public health concern.

The proposed
revisions to 36 CFR 1.4 and 2.21 align with NPS policy on the use of
ENDS which prohibits their use within all facilities and vehicles
that are government owned or leased, and within all national park
concessions facilities.

You can
read the proposed revisions in the Federal
Register’s reading room. They wwere published
in the Federal Register on Friday. Public comments are welcome for a
60-day period that begins Friday and ends March 7. To comment, please
visit www.regulations.gov and
search for "RIN 1024-AE30." Then follow the instructions
for submitting comments.